1. Field
The present disclosure generally relates to targeting marketing, and more particularly, to methods, systems, and articles of manufacture for targeting ad impressions to customers and consumers based upon spend. The methods, systems, and articles described herein are further directed to the measurement of the effectiveness and relevance of those ad impressions.
2. Related Art
Businesses frequently store a variety of information relating to the interests and activities of their customers. For example, transaction account companies (e.g., American Express, Visa, Discover, etc.) typically maintain information about the purchasing habits and/or product affinities of their customers. Transaction account issuing companies and payment processors may use this information to target advertisements, promotional offers, discounts, and the like to their customers. Thus, the information that transaction account companies collect about their customers enables a more relevant provision of services to customers.
Although transaction account companies and payment processors often have access to a variety of purchasing information, this information is typically unavailable to merchants. Thus, merchants are unable to incorporate into their marketing efforts data associated with the actual shopping activities of transaction account customers. Merchants are therefore limited, due to an incomplete understanding of the interests of these customers, in their efforts to provide relevant and useful offers and services.
Accordingly, an improved system for understanding the interests and needs of transaction account customers is needed. This system should permit merchants to target marketing and other promotional offers to transaction account customers based on the purchasing activities of those customers. The system should further permit transaction account companies to measure the success and value of the system, particularly from a customer's standpoint. In other words, the system should incorporate an ability to evaluate the actual relevance of advertisements, offers, promotions, and discounts that are served or delivered to customers.
Finally, the system should seek to preserve the privacy of the customers it aims to serve. To this end, the system should incorporate one or more methods for maintaining the anonymity of customers.